Bill & Melinda Gates funding for pharma firm Enesi

If successful, the project is expected to allow Enesi to develop longer-term pre-clinical and clinical plans for the solid dose M&R vaccine product concept.

An ImplaVax-enabled solid dose M&R vaccine does away with the need for reconstitution, with all its associated needlestick and cross-contamination hazards.

Improved thermal stability also makes delivery more cost-effective and robust, particularly in countries where cold-chain issues and access to target populations are challenging.

Measles is one of the leading causes of childhood mortality, leading to an estimated 450 deaths a day, according to the World Health Organisation.

It is highly infectious and serious complications include blindness, encephalitis, ear and respiratory infections.

Rubella is usually mild in childhood but if a pregnant woman is infected, it can result in miscarriage or cause serious complications for the foetus.

Enesi chief executive David Hipkiss. Pic: Enesi

Enesi chief executive David Hipkiss said the team were “honoured and delighted” by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation award, the amount of which it has not disclosed.

Hipkiss added: “We have embarked on multiple collaborations with leading companies, academic groups, government and non-government organisations, with the objective to demonstrate the global utility of ImplaVax in multiple disease areas that constitute major health issues.

“The success of these programmes could be transformational in improving global health.”

Enesi’s technology is being developed to improve the delivery of vaccines across a wide range of infectious diseases and allergies, and the company is collaborating with several organisations, including Oxford University and Public Health England.

Last month, Enesi received £870,000 funding from Innovate UK under the Biomedical Catalyst 2019 Round 1: Early and Late Stage Awards initiative.

About the Author

Gill Oliver

Gill Oliver is a professionally trained journalist who’s written for The New Statesman, The Bureau for Investigative Journalism, The Daily Mail’s business section This is Money, The Press Association, The Huffington Post plus a host of national magazines, news agencies and trade and industry journals. She’s also spent nine years reporting on the Oxfordshire business and tech scene for The Oxford Times and The Oxford Mail.